Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan addresses lawmakers from his ruling AK Party at the Turkish Parliament in Ankara, Turkey October 11, 2023. NO ARCHIVES./File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsANKARA, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Monday submitted a bill approving Sweden's NATO membership bid to parliament for ratification, the presidency said, in a move welcomed by Stockholm that clears the way for it to join the Western defence alliance. "The Protocol on Sweden's NATO Accession was signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on October 23, 2023 and referred to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey," the presidency said on social media platform X without elaborating. Finland's membership was sealed in April, in a historic expansion of the alliance, but Sweden's bid had been held up by Turkey and Hungary. Erdogan has previously linked Sweden's NATO bid to U.S. support for its request.

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Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Sweden's, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Ulf Kristersson, Kristersson, Gumrukcu, Huseyin Hayatsever, Simon Johnson, Alex Richardson, Hugh Lawson Organizations: AK, Turkish, Presidential Press, Rights, NATO, Kurdistan Workers Party, European Union, Grand National Assembly of, Sweden's, Thomson Locations: Ankara, Turkey, Rights ANKARA, Stockholm, United States, Sweden, Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Finland, Ukraine, Hungary